


And Linger Here Among the Stars

by sandy_s



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Exquisite Corpse, F/M, Future Fic, Moon, Outer Space, Stars, exquisite corpse round robin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-08 23:07:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16438562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sandy_s/pseuds/sandy_s
Summary: This chapter is part of a longer story on Elysian Fields. It's a round-robin tale with a twist. The twist is that each subsequent author is only given the last paragraph of the previous chapter and has to build a tale from there! In this chapter, I was given a wonderful paragraph from thenewbuzwuzz, which will be in italics at the beginning! Hope you enjoy!Disclaimer: I own nothing. Joss owns all!





	And Linger Here Among the Stars

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thenewbuzwuzz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thenewbuzwuzz/gifts), [yellowb](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yellowb/gifts).



> Special thank you to Sigyn, relurker, and Carrie Ann for help with the chapter! Your thoughts really helped polish things up!

_Buffy rotated the map, and it began to change like a kaleidoscope, along with the walls of the cave. Every stretch of wall bloomed with colorful tapestries of… her and Spike, in the best rendition of some textile artist. Buffy in a black beanie, standing side by side with Spike while the unconscious body of a six-headed lion draped over what was probably meant to be a car. Buffy hugging Spike, a wide grin on her face and a ring glittering on her finger. The two of them sitting on the porch while a porcupine creature squatted in the grass… had that been there? Lying naked on the floor behind strategically placed pieces of rubble, in the ruins of a building that looked oddly fortress-like. More and more tapestries appeared, and Buffy knew each one was a door, the way you know things in dreams for no reason. With a quite different certainty, she knew they’d be fine wherever they went together. Buffy and Spike smiled at each other and stepped through time hand in hand._

They skipped through time periods without stopping to linger, flashing forward into the future and dipping back into the past with surprising ease. Buffy considered that perhaps the nature of the magic that came with the map made this easier. She and Spike were taking turns pulling the other forward to the next time, but eventually Buffy grew tired of this because she was only getting snippets of emotion, bits of memories, scraps of what was happening. Instead of letting Spike tug her forward into the next period, she held back.

Spike glanced back at her with worry all over his face, his blue eyes flashing in simultaneous confusion and concern – consideration he always seemed to have for her no matter the time. “What’s going on, love?”

Buffy glanced around the basement of her house in Sunnydale, the stupid cartoon drawing of Angel on the punching bag hanging from the ceiling, a pile of wrinkled sheets on the unmade pallet in the corner. This was just before he burned up to save the world; she was suddenly filled with a sense of dread tinged with faded sorrow. She didn’t want to linger here; her fingers gripped the edge of the map a little too hard, wrinkling the fabric. Oops. She didn’t want to get stuck here by damaging the map. The map was the easiest tool they’d used thus far. “The next place.” She squeezed his hand. “The next place in the future. Can we stay a while?”

Spike seemed to realize where they were and softened further. “Can see why you wouldn’t want to linger here too long. Suppose you don’t fancy a repeat conversation with OG Evil.”

She smiled in relief. “Not at all.”

“Don’t care to either.” He nodded at the map. “You pick, and we’ll stay a while wherever.” He paused. “Unless it involves one of us dying.”

“Good point about the dying.” She tried in vain to straighten the map with one hand and made a face in frustration, both at her failed efforts and at Spike’s offer. “But it’s your turn.”

He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. “Since when do I care about turns? I go where you go. It’s always been my way.”

Buffy trembled with his touch, but she didn’t let herself succumb to desire. Not now. Not here. She re-focused on the map. With her attention, the map came to life in a similar way as it had in the cave, transforming her old basement on Revello Drive into a wonderland of windows to other times and places. 

As the images started to come into focus, she felt the signature pinprick of the original evil, crawling like icy cold fingers up her spine. “Damn it.”

Spike gripped her hand hard, bringing her back to him. “I feel it, too. Focus, pet, so we can get out of here.”

Closing her eyes for a moment, she summoned her will, took a deep breath that she let out in a slow puff, and reopened her eyes. The map became clearer as did the gateways. Buffy scanned them, moving through the doorways to the past to get to the future. There were so many to choose from, and her heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t decide.

“Hurry, love,” Spike urged. 

Buffy felt the First Evil resurge. In a panic, she made a rash decision, stepping through a doorway. Spike was close behind her, never letting go of her hand. The magic swirled all around them in a wave of colors, a smattering of voices, a swell of emotions, and an immense pressure that made Buffy feel like her stomach might come hurtling out of her mouth. As soon as she felt the world solid around her, she shut down the map. 

The new world was swathed in complete darkness, and she and Spike were cocooned together in a soft, warm bed. Spike stirred next to her, his hand free of hers, his arm around her waist. She lifted her head off his chest, which was covered in something soft that felt like cotton – but not like cotton – under her fingertips. Was he wearing pajamas?

“Where are we?” At least, they hadn’t walked right into slaying a monster. She could smell the sharp scent of the cigarette he’d smoked. . . was that two time periods ago after they’d slayed that annoying (and definitely evil) porcupine creature? Somehow, the lingering smell of tobacco was stronger and different than she expected, but she wasn’t bothered by it because it mingled with the scent of him. She loved him.

“I’d say that’s pretty obvious, pet,” Spike whispered, his voice husky with sleep. “The better question is when are we?” It was the question he always asked in response to her question. It was their way of reassuring each other that they were both still together, though their future selves probably knew about the test. “No heartbeats in the room. We’re alone.” Spike sat up with an abruptness that Buffy wasn’t expecting.

Annoyed but also a little alarmed, she swept her long hair off her forehead with one hand. “What’s wrong?”

There was some fumbling and cursing and a loud bump that rang in Buffy’s ears. “Where are the sodding lights in this room?”

Dawn’s voice filled the room. It was too loud. “Do you want the lights on, Spike?”

“Dawn?” Buffy asked in confusion. Something besides the volume didn’t sound quite right with her sister’s voice. 

“Yes, Buffy? Would you like the lights on?”

Buffy frowned. “Yes. Lights please.”

Soft yellow illumination started low and then gradually increased in intensity until it was just at the right level to see where they were. The bed was queen-sized and had no headboard but seemed to meld into the wall. There was a small grey end table on either side of the bed. Spike’s had a haphazard stack of hardback books and hers had a plain sheet of paper that appeared thick and sort of translucent. Strange. 

The colors of the wide room ran from soft greys to lighter-colored blacks. Pops of burgundy appeared throughout. There was a large appearing window that took up one whole wall and angled around to cover half of a second one near her side of the bed, and there were what appeared to be blackout shades in deep maroon. The wall on Spike’s side of the bed contained the semblance of drawers with various buttons that lit up as the lights in the room came on, and there was a small niche that contained grey mugs with no handles near the wall-of-window. There were two doors in the room, but they weren’t exactly doors. They merely looked like the outline of doors with no door handles. 

Everything was clearer and sharper than she expected. She swore she could see more colors in the spectrum. Like. . . were those two shades of grey slightly off on the drawers? It was like they’d been replaced, and the colors were different. The burgundy of the carpet didn’t exactly match the blackout shades. Weirdness abounded. 

“When is a good question,” she breathed. “And why is Dawn the voice of what is apparently our home communication system?”

Dawn’s voice rang through the air. “Are you asking me? If so, you and Spike started using my voice ten years ago. You told Spike that you were starting to forget the sound of my voice. He took the remaining recordings you had and created me for your birthday.”

“Ohhh. Future us.” Buffy turned to Spike, but he had an expression on his face that she couldn’t read. She felt an overwhelming wave of grief. Her little sister was gone in this future. She focused on Spike to avoid being consumed by emotion until they knew more about where they were. As she studied him, she decided that there was something else other than grief in his eyes. She reached out to touch his arm. “What? What is it?”

His face crumpled into a look of sadness as tears filled his eyes, and she didn’t know what that meant. All she knew is that he was hurting, so she moved into his arms and embraced him. “I don’t understand.”

He pushed back from her, taking her gently by the shoulders. “I-I don’t know how to tell you this, love, because it’s something that I can’t fathom. Not at all.”

She shook her head, studying his concerned eyes. She removed his hands from her shoulders. He didn’t feel cool like normal, but she supposed that was because they’d been curled up together under the covers. “What do you mean?” 

“You don’t know?”

Her stomach sank. “Spike, you’re scaring me. Out with it already!” 

He held her gaze with his own. “Buffy, love. You’re a vampire.” 

A tear spilled over his cheek, and Buffy brought her finger up to catch it, a denial of his words on her lips. She noticed that his eyes seemed to be a mix of blues that she never noticed before, and his skin. . . his skin in contact with hers sent an electric wave of desire over her whole body so that she felt like she was vibrating in sync with him. Oh. Oh! 

“Oh.” Fear jetted through her abdomen. No heartbeats. She put her hand over the left side of her chest. Nothing drummed against her fingers. “I-I guess I am.”

“I never wanted this for you,” Spike whispered, stroking her cheek. “I don’t know how or why we made this decision, but. . .” He trailed off as he closed his eyes. “You’re my sunshine. My heartbeat. I would never take life from you.” He gritted his teeth and then said with pain in his voice, “Immortality is not a decision to take lightly.”

Buffy recalled a time when her worst nightmare was to wake up a vampire in her own grave. Boy howdy, times had changed. With all the time hopping and the realization that she never wanted to lose Spike, she was okay with it. Being a vampire meant many years with the man she loved. . . the man she thought she’d lost. Didn’t he get that? She moved to sit up on her heels so that her knees touched his thigh. 

“Hey.” She tried to peer into his eyes, but he wouldn’t open them, so she kissed him with tenderness until he relaxed. Holy geez, kissing felt different. . . more decadent. She filed that tidbit in the back of her brain for analysis later. “Hey. I have no doubt that there’s a reason I’m a vampire. And I don’t feel particularly inclined to go on a murdering spree, so I’m assuming my soul is intact.” She tilted her head in thought. “But I know that the soul isn’t the be-all-end-all. You taught me that. Okay, I’m becoming the queen of Babble-On here. You going to stop me anytime soon? ‘Cause I could go on, and I really kinda want to know more about what year this is and where we are. You know: the-when-are-we part. And there are other parts to this vampire thing that I’m kinda thinking I want to experience.” Like the kissing part. Her lips tingled in anticipation. She glanced down at her hand and saw a plain silver-colored band around her finger. She touched it. The metal appeared to be. . . almost soldered into her flesh. She couldn’t remove it. “And hey, look at this. We’re still married.”

He opened his eyes a slit and glanced between her left hand and his. He had a matching platinum band. “We are.”

Buffy grinned. “Dawnie?”

Dawn’s voice replied, “Yeah? You rang?” She sounded just like Buffy’s sister: all with the little sister sarcasm.

“What year is it? And where in the world are we?” 

“It’s 2218. If you’re going by the old way of keeping time. And you’re in Houston, Texas, in what used to be the United States. I’m telling you this way because it sounds like you’re from another time. A time when you weren’t a vampire with a soul?” This computerized Dawn was perceptive. That was just a tad creepy. At least she confirmed that Buffy had a soul. Huh. “And you have a travel map.”

Buffy glanced at the folded-up map. “Oh. Are these. . . ?”

“Defunct. They were popular late last century. A few could have ended up in the century before that. People travel through time another way in the here and now.” Dawn even had a “duh” sound in her voice like she was getting bored with the questions. 

“Lil Bit, could you fill us in on what we do here?” Spike asked, glancing at the ceiling as if her voice was coming from there.

“Sure. You and Buffy do a mix of work for the international government and the remnants of the old Council of Watchers, which is beyond defunct. But you do your own stuff, which annoys the powers-that-be.” The Dawn-computer sighed. “You actually have a job today.”

“Great!” Buffy perked up. “What is it?”

“How should I know?” Dawn huffed, sounding so close to her actual sister that Buffy almost snapped back. “Check your planner.”

Buffy reminded herself that she was talking to a machine. “My planner? Uh. Where would that be?”

“Right where you always keep it. On the nightstand.” 

“That see-through piece of paper thing?” 

“Yep.”

Spike reached around her and snagged the “planner.” The object came to life in his hands, kind of like the map but with clearer images. When he tried to poke around on the screen, it screeched at him. “What the bloody hell?”

“Give it to Buffy. Only she can turn it on,” Dawn noted. “If you don’t need me, I’m going to power down.”

“That’s fine,” Buffy said, relinquishing the device from Spike’s hands. As soon as she touched the smooth surface, it came alive, a 3D hologram shooting up and taking a scan of her face in a bright blue flash. “Whoa. That was. . . blinding.” She blinked the stars away and stared. “How do I work it?”

Spike looked just as befuddled as she was. “Hell if I know, pet. And your faux sis is no longer available.” 

Buffy shrugged, lowered her head to the object, and tried, “Hello, device thingie.” 

Nothing. 

“Why don’t you try being more direct?” Spike suggested without a trace of the sarcasm he’d usually have in this kind of situation.

Buffy thought for a moment. “What’s on my schedule for today?” 

A pleasant-sounding British female voice stated, “Find Kungai demons. Rescue Paul’s kidnapped daughter. Location: Earth Moon, Colony Five.”

“Huh?” Buffy made an ultra-confused face at Spike. “Like the moon moon?”

“Apparently, there are colonies on the moon, love.” Spike was grinning like the cat who ate the canary, his eyes sparkling. Buffy wanted to sit and bask in the blue. “We’re going into space!”

“What’s a Kung Guy demon? Like King Kong’s cousin, Guy?”

“That’s really bad, pet.” At least, he sounded amused now. She’d take that over his earlier glum any day of the week.

“I know.” She couldn’t resist sneaking in another kiss. . . just to see what kissing as a vampire felt like. 

* * *

Buffy couldn’t believe it. 

An hour ago, she had asked her fake sister to explain more stuff about where to go, what to wear, and what to pack. Although they were vampires, they didn’t have to worry about travelling in the dark of night. The rings on their fingers served as more than markers of their union; they were also a combination of magic and technology that allowed them to walk in the sunlight without harm. The rings were modern-day gems of Amarra. Dawn had informed them that many vampires had said jewelry nowadays, but theirs were among the first. 

Spike and Buffy had left their apartment without seeing very much of the outside world. The transport train they’d taken to the space travel station moved so quickly that their surroundings were a blur through the window. Buffy had been disappointed about that.

But now she and Spike were on a personal shuttle to the moon. A trip that would take just forty-five minutes. 

They were already in the air – a takeoff that felt like the motion of an elevator starting its journey upward, and they were buckled into large chairs that were soft and comfortable – kind of like a recliner of old but sturdier. Buffy simultaneously wondered why there seemed to be no gravitational forces trying to hold them back and considered that maybe the technology of this time period did something special to make the ride seem so smooth. 

Spike was nearby but completely ignoring her. Instead, his platinum-blonde head was bent over a computer screen of some sort that was attached to his chair, and she mused that even in 2218, they had hair bleach that Spike still liked to use. 

“So, is it weird that we’re still in contact with Giles’s relatives? And that it’s his, great- great- great- great- or some number of greats granddaughter that we’re rescuing?” Spike didn’t respond. “Her name is cute. Billie. Isn’t that short for William? I wonder if she’s somehow sorta named after you. ‘Cause that would say something. And hey. If Billie is his great-whatever granddaughter, does that mean Giles had a kid? Did he have a secret love child that I never knew about? Or! Did he have a kid after Sunnydale? ‘Cause he would have been majorly old. Then again, who am I to call anyone old considering the year that we’re in?” Still nothing. She frowned. “Are you ignoring me?” Nothing. “Spike!”

Spike didn’t even flinch. “I’m listening to you, pet. Heard every word that came out of your mouth.”

“Hmph. I don’t believe you.” Even though her words were indignant, Buffy felt a twinge of anxiety. Was this it? She was a vampire, and now, suddenly, Spike wasn’t interested in her anymore?

Spike continued, seemingly unaware of her fears, “Rupert would never allow anyone in his family to be named after the likes of me. And he wouldn’t have been too old to have a kid after Sunnydale. Plenty of people have sprogs late in life. Isn’t there a medical procedure people do sometimes. . . IVF?” 

Spike’s fingers danced over the screen, and Buffy watched mesmerized. Even movements seemed different. . . sharper. She wanted to feel those fingers tracing over her skin. If he wasn’t so interested in whatever he was doing, she’d make a move. She shivered with desire. With a flourish, he poked his finger at the screen, and a loud noise rang through the entire shuttle. Spike glanced over at her then and smiled. She melted a little. 

“I was listening but trying to figure out. . . this,” he announced. 

“What?” 

The solid metal sides of the shuttle rolled back like car windows used to glide down, only they were in space, and there was a thick clear glass-like substance between them and vast blackness and stars. . . so many stars. The sun was to their right – a bright blinding ball of golden yellow. The earth was below, the atmosphere swirling with a mix of white clouds, blue ocean, and green forests. 

“Ohhh,” Buffy breathed. “That’s. . .” 

“Indescribable?” Spike’s voice was low and husky. 

“Yeah.” Her eyes found his, and she saw it there. He wasn’t gazing at the stars or the sun or the earth below their feet. He was watching her. She had to ask. “Do you think you could still love me? Even if I’m a vampire? I’m not exactly warm-blooded. And if I’m supposed to be your sunshine. . .” She inclined her head toward the sun. “I can’t be that anymore.”

His eyebrows drew together with sharpness that Buffy couldn’t interpret, but his tone was gentle. “What kind of balderdash is this?”

She shrugged one shoulder and turned her head toward the sun. She wondered what it’d feel like to burn to ash. Depression of long past nipped at her heels, but she mashed it down and away. “Well, you’re not denying it.”

Spike unbuckled himself from his seat and was before her in a flash, his hands gripping her forearms and his lips millimeters from hers. With a growl, he kissed her long and deep and full of passion, his tongue slipping past her lips and coaxing hers alive until she was moving with him, her whole body alive, nerve endings sparking. She gasped when he drew away again, and she realized belatedly that she didn’t need to breathe, though she still was. Her heart wasn’t pounding like she was used to, but her body sang with a form of desire that she never felt before, and she wanted – no, longed for him to keep going. When she tried to traverse the distance between them, he held back, his eyes blazing.

His grip on her tightened. “Now, see here, missy. Sunshine bloody well doesn’t need to be literal heat. There’re flames between us whether you’re cool to the touch or have a pulse that rockets blood through your veins. I feel it now. Don’t you?”

Her chest heaved with emotion that she couldn’t elucidate, and she squirmed with the desire to feel his skin on hers. “I do.”

“Good.” He released her then, her chair bouncing from the movement. Then, he stormed back to his chair and flopped down in it. 

Buffy blinked at his reaction. She had no idea what just happened. One second they were on the verge of ripping all their clothes off and the next, he was gone. “Spike?” He was quiet, so she continued inching forward by asking for the second time, “What’s wrong?”

“You’re a vampire now. Vampires aren’t exactly known for their fidelity. What if you get tired of me in the next century?” His voice was small, and Buffy felt compassion fill her heart.

At the same time, irritation surged forth. “You look here! I’m obviously still here after two centuries. What does that tell you?” She held up her hand. “I have a frigging ring soldered into my finger that I can’t take off if I even wanted to, which I don’t. A-and. . . and newsflash: I’m not Drusilla!” 

Spike chuckled then. “God, I sound like your ex-soldier-boy.”

This broke through the bubble of Buffy’s anger. She laughed, too. “And I can’t believe we’re not weightless. You know? Like in all the movies about space.” 

“Must be something about the future. Gravity in spaceships.” Spike lifted his head from where he was lounging. “Come here, love.” He pushed himself up. “Let’s enjoy the journey. How many times are we going to get to experience something like this?”

Spike didn’t have to tell her twice. Buffy unlatched herself and hurried into Spike’s open arms, pulling herself onto his lap. They spent the remainder of the forty-five minutes curled up together, watching the stars and the sun, the slowly retreating planet, and the approaching moon. 

* * *

If the view of present day Earth was impossible, the moon colony more than made up for it. There were ten colonies on the moon, and number five was the leisure colony. There were bars, coffee shops, restaurants, spas, gyms, swimming pools, an amusement park, art galleries, auction houses, movie theaters, an actual theater, and even a sports stadium, along with a variety of places to stay and sleep before the next day of fun. The hallways between activities were wide and colored in muted blues, greens, and silver, the ceiling high above stretched over everything in a dome, which was clear and offered a generous view of the stars and other celestial bodies. 

The thing that blew Buffy’s mind was that there were demons and humans mingling about in groups or by themselves without a care in the world. This was very different than Sunnydale. She and Spike wandered from the shuttle docking station into the crowds, and she marveled that they’d seen so few shuttles in space with them, but there were so many people here. 

“Where are we supposed to go?” Buffy whispered as she threaded both her arms through the straps of the black leather backpack that contained their weapons and a thermos of blood (aka ambrosia that she’d partaken of prior to their trip). She hoped it’d be enough to quell her urge to lunge at the human necks, and the heartbeats. . . oh, the heartbeats pumping all the delicious blood through veins. She chewed her lip, her incisor pricking the skin, as she tried not to drool.

“I have no bloody idea, pet,” Spike said, addressing her question. Then, he picked up her hand and tucked her fingers into the crook of his arm. He kissed her temple. “And I know that look, love. Focus on me.”

“Am I that obvious?”

“You staring at all the carotid arteries marching past? Just a bit.” 

He was teasing her, so she mock glared at him. 

A nondescript man stepped right in front of Spike. His abrupt halt forced Spike to jar Buffy, and they both stared in annoyance at the man with his small smile and neatly groomed haircut. 

“What the hell are you doing, mate?” Spike asked with a quiet edge.

“Did I hear you say that you don’t know where to go?” The man tilted his head just slightly to the right.

Spike stiffened. “Yeah. What of it?”

“Well, I’m here to help,” he said with unnatural buoyance.

Buffy squinted at his hair. Something was off about it. “Are you. . . a robot?” But he had a heartbeat, and he smelled. . . human. She couldn’t believe she could pick that up amidst all the other scents eddying around her. Good god, was this what it was like to be Spike? How did he manage with all the distinctive smells blending together? She made a mental note to ask him later.

“No. I’m an android. Robots and androids are two very different beings. We have bodily systems that function much like humans do.” He cocked his head the other way, which added to the unnatural part. “How do you not know this?”

“Look. We don’t have time to deal with your cultural sensitivities. We’re on a mission here,” Spike said, trying to push past the android.

But the andriod stood his ground and was immovable. “I can help.”

Spike growled in frustration. “What part of move don’t you understand?”

Buffy put her other hand on his forearm. “Hey. Maybe he can help. Doesn’t hurt to ask.”

With a sigh, Spike waved a hand at the android. “Go ahead.”

She smiled at the android, disentangling herself from Spike and holding out her hand. “I’m Buffy.”

The android accepted her gesture of good will; his hand was smooth and warm to the touch. “Conrad.”

“Nice to meet you. Do you happen to know where we can find a pair of Kungai demons?” she asked with brightness in her voice.

Conrad made a face. “Kungai demons? What would two vampires want with a pair of them? They’re dangerous. Their horns are very deadly. They drain the life out of any living creature. Most creatures give them a wide berth.”

Spike glanced over his shoulder from where he was scanning the crowd. “Thought you were here to help. Not judge.”

“I am. I just like Buffy here, and do not want her to get hurt.” 

Spike snorted. “No need to worry about that. She can take care of herself.”

Conrad regarded Buffy with a thoughtful expression. “He does not seem to respect or appreciate you. Perhaps you need someone of a different species? Someone with more love for you?”

“Don’t worry. He has more than enough love for the both of us,” Buffy said. “And he appreciates and takes care of me plenty.” She considered the double meaning behind this, but she wasn’t sure an android would get it. She really wanted Spike to take care of her, and soon. “He does more for me than I deserve sometimes.”

“If you say so. If you change your mind though, I can help with that as well. Introduce you to – ” Conrad made a funny sound in his throat when Spike twisted the front of his shirt. 

“There will be no introducing of any sort. Answer the lady’s other question. Now.” He flashed a bit of yellow eye at the android.

“O-okay.” Spike let go of Conrad, and he straightened his uniform, addressing Buffy. “There are two Kungai demons that arrived the day before yesterday from Earth. They’ve mostly been hanging out at the Spotted Porcupine bar. I believe that they are there now.”

“Are there such things as spotted porcupines?” Buffy shuddered at the memory of the evil porcupine’s red eyes. 

“They are a type of fish that releases neurotoxins, I believe,” Conrad said. “The bar is surrounded by an aquarium.”

“Oh.” Just as bad as the porcupine demon. “Can you point us in the right direction?” 

“I’ll do you one better.” Conrad produced a paper map from his satchel and placed it in Buffy’s hands. As she unfolded it, he searched the structures until he found the Spotted Porcupine. He tapped it once, and a path lit the way to the bar from where they were standing. 

“Thank you.” She offered him a genuine smile of gratitude before snagging Spike’s hand and lacing her fingers with his. 

Weaving their way through the throngs of demons and humans and then taking a ride on a monorail, Buffy and Spike made their way around the colony to the farthest edges where they found the Spotted Porcupine. The bar was a huge structure carved out of what looked like a large dark rock covered in colorful coral and plants. As they got closer, an entrance appeared in the stone, and they soon found themselves inside a large space with various rooms carved out like mini-caves. The bar was lit by a deep blue light from the aquarium that wove in and out and around the rooms. Fish of all sizes and shapes swam in various clusters, and Buffy pondered how they set up and maintained this mini-sea in a dome on the moon. 

Demons and humans alike populated the bar, but the clientele was of a different sort than the rest of the colony. They were rougher looking, larger, and drunker, and Buffy mused that they reminded her of the customers in Willy’s Bar. She felt out of place and touched her blonde hair, wishing she could do something to look less wholesome – if a vampire could look wholesome. She’d seen herself in the camera on her planner; she’d looked like herself, only without the tan. She guessed that they didn’t spend much time in the sun despite their rings. And did vampires even tan? She had no idea.

Dressed all in black and with his curls slicked back, Spike was in his element. He slid on his vampire mask and took the lead, guiding her around as they searched for the Kungai demons. They found their targets in the dimmest, emptiest room of the bar, sipping glowing green cocktails at a table. A young teen girl was perched on a stool between them, drinking what looked suspiciously like a chocolate milkshake, her red hair in twin braids. She was tiny in comparison to her demon captors.

Before Buffy could react or even offer weapons from the backpack she was wearing, Spike dashed forward, no doubt only seeing a girl in trouble. Before the Kungai demons could react, he took a swing at one of them. 

The huge Kungai demon in question simply leaned to the left, absorbing the blow. Then, he held up a clawed hand, grabbed Spike by the collar and held him up, looking down his deadly horn at him. “What are you doing, vampire?” His voice was deep and guttural.

Spike kicked out his legs, loosening himself from the hold and then using the table to flip back and away from the demon. “Saving a girl from the likes of you!”

Buffy rushed up and slipped him an ax. “What he said.”

The Kungai demons both stood as one, and the smaller demon took a swipe at Buffy who ducked to the left and then bounced back with a roundhouse kick to the demon’s jaw. The larger demon made a hissing sound like a challenge and charged at Buffy. Spike jumped on his back in an effort to distract him, and soon, an all-out brawl had broken out.

Buffy and Spike danced around the demons, who moved slower due to their hulking size. Soon, there were grunts and shouts, and tables and chairs were smashed as kicks and punches were thrown. Nobody came rushing to watch the battle, instead leaving the four to their own devices. Buffy relished the chance to stretch her legs and test out her vampire reflexes, which were surprisingly not unlike her Slayer ones. She must have retained some level of strength because she was a Slayer. She and Spike moved into their familiar routine with ease, fighting back to back and guarding each other’s blind spots, especially from the demon horns. The demons were no slouches and gave as they got until everyone was straining with exhaustion. 

Buffy noticed that the little girl crouched under a small overhang out of the way. When Buffy was tossed in her general direction, she paused in a squat near her.

“You okay? Billie, right?” she asked with concern.

The girl, who was probably about 12- or 13-years-old, didn’t seem either relieved or frightened. She just seemed frustrated. “I’m fine. I just wanted to go on an adventure.” Her accent was British and adorable. She sounded like Giles. . . if he were a kid and a girl.

“Some adventure,” Buffy said, not understanding. 

“You don’t get it. They’re my friends. And you spilled my milkshake.” Billie pointed at her lavender dress which was stained a dark brown. 

“Oh. So. . .”

The girl nodded. “Yeah.”

Buffy rolled her eyes and stood, her legs spread wide and her arms crossed. “Stop!”

The Kungai demons and Spike both froze mid-punches. 

“Billie here ran away from home.” Buffy grinned. “For an adventure.”

“What?!” Spike’s forehead smoothed out, and his fangs retracted. 

“Yep.”

“It’s true.” Billie pulled herself up next to Buffy. “I was angry at my tutor. She never lets me do anything. I don’t get any breaks from my studies. Not even for a holiday.” She sighed. “Father’s going to be so mad. But it’s not George and Barbara’s fault.”

Spike took a step toward them. “Well, your father sent us to rescue you. Pretty sure he thinks that you’re in danger.” 

Billie’s eyes grew round with worry. “I guess I’m going to be grounded.”

“Bit of spunk in a teenage girl is not something to punish away. It’s something to embrace,” Spike reassured her.

“He’s right. Most of the time,” Buffy said, thinking of Dawn getting into trouble with said vampire.

The smaller of the Kungai moved to stand next to Spike. “We’ll explain to your dad, honey. A girl shouldn’t be kept under lock and key. He should have taken you to see the stars.”

“We were studying astronomy,” Billie said, her cheeks flushing pink. 

“We own a planetarium,” the other Kungai demon explained, sounding sheepish. “She’s been sneaking out every Friday night for a viewing. She said her father would be out of town when she heard we’d be coming to the moon for a two-day vacation. We thought, why not take her? No one would know because she was old enough to stay alone for a day or two, and we’d have her home before he returned.” 

* * *

A few hours later, Paul arrived at the colony to pick up his wayward daughter. He was upset and angry until she and the Kungai demons explained what happened. The demons were deeply apologetic for causing any distress. With Buffy and Spike’s support, Billie shared her desire to have more vacations and breaks from her studies, and her father was more understanding than expected. He even invited the Kungai demons over for dinner in the next week, much to Billie’s delight.

After everything was resolved, Paul offered to fly Buffy and Spike back to Earth on his dime. Buffy refused and said she wanted to take a private shuttle with Spike. She couldn’t wait to get him alone again. 

Once they’d taken off, Spike peeled away the walls of their shuttle with more ease. Before he could turn to Buffy, she pounced on him, pressing her lips to his as her hands fumbled to undo the safety straps on his seat. A growl escaped her throat as the uncooperative bindings refused to budge, and Spike, who was kissing her back with equal ardor, pulled away for a moment to undo the restraints. Buffy bounced back on the balls of her feet, and once he was free, she pulled him forward and resumed kissing him, her body aflame with desire as she stripped his jacket off his shoulders. 

Spike sloughed off the covering and cast it aside as he allowed Buffy to throw him against the thick, clear floor of the shuttle, thousands of stars shining in tiny pinpricks of light all around them. His azure eyes were lit by the sun, and Buffy thought that she’d never seen anything so beautiful. She kissed him again, tasting his lips and tongue and then working her way down his neck to his black T-shirt. Pouting at the appearance of cotton in the way, she sat back and wriggled her hips against his as she swept her blouse over her head. 

The bit of cloth fluttered to the ground atop his lost jacket, but before she could rip the fabric of his shirt, Spike gripped her elbows and rolled with her until she was below him, her naked flesh flush against the cool clear surface. 

“Slow down, pet,” he whispered, his hands strong around her wrists over her head. “I want to cherish this. I want to cherish you, glowing in the sunlight with the Earth below us.”

There was such love in his eyes that she obeyed, and he let go of her, lowered his body against hers, and concentrated his lips on her neck and that space where her neck ended and her shoulder began – the space that always drove her crazy. She let out a soft moan as he trailed his fingertips around her ribcage and fondled her breast, teasing her nipple. 

As he continued to press kisses along her chest and then ran his tongue over her other breast, Buffy allowed her arms to move, twining one hand in his hair and loosening the gel. She brought the other down to his waist, thumbing open his jeans. She marveled that jeans were still very much jeans in this time. Sliding the metal zipper down, she pushed the rough fabric over his hips, his penis heavy against her thigh. She felt Spike tense and then relax as she stroked him with deliberation, up and down, up and down. He buried his face in her hair, his breath cool over her earlobe, which he nipped when she played with his tip. 

His small bite drew forth something she’d never felt before, but before she could make sense of the sensation, her fangs surged forth, and her face shifted into what she knew was a vampire visage. 

Oh god.

Spike drew up and studied her face with an expression she couldn’t read, and she pulled away from him, her booted feet sliding and squeaking against the slick surface as her eyes filled with tears. 

He followed her with a tentativeness that she knew even now was tied back to that time in the bathroom, and her heart sank. She needed him to not balk. Was she horrendous? 

She heard him kicking off his shoes and jeans and then felt him gather her up in his arms, his body naked beneath her. “I love you, pet. Nothing wrong with being a vampire. You’re just as beautiful with fangs and ridges as the day I met you when you were only human.” Cool tears flowed over her cheeks. He shifted her around so that she was facing him, head turned away. He stroked her hair. “Please don’t be ashamed. You’re perfect to me.”

Those words made something in her head swing the other direction. If he thought she was ashamed, did he think she was ashamed of him? She peeked up shyly at him. “Show me?”

His face was filled with confusion and vulnerability. “Show you what, love?”

“Yours.” She stood and peeled off the remainder of her clothing before kneeling before him. “Your fangs and ridges.”

He smiled then and changed, his teeth sliding free of their home and his ridges wrinkling his forehead. Golden eyes blinked at her. 

Keeping her eyes on his, she brought her hand to his length and began her ministrations again, building the friction until she felt herself grow wetter in response and smelled his desire for her. God, this smell thing was. . . 

Spike drew her hips close and slid his fingers inside her, and she almost melted into a puddle and drifted off into outer space right there. “Don’t stop,” he urged her, and she didn’t, bringing every bit of focus back to touching him as he moved in and out, stroking her clit with each motion. 

Then, when stars were filling her eyes, and she thought she might explode, he groaned, grasped her buttocks, standing with her and slamming her against the side of the shuttle so that it jerked ever so slightly in its course. He pushed himself inside her so that she cried out, and then, he began to thrust so slowly that she was consumed in sensation. When she couldn’t take the slowness anymore, she bucked her hips for him to speed up. As he did, she felt another need take over, itching for more, and before she could think, she slid her fangs deep into the vein on his neck. He roared and thrust so hard and fast that she thought she might split apart as his blood flowed into her mouth, cool and smoky and sweet in a way that warm blood wasn’t. As she swallowed, her orgasm bloomed between her legs, radiating from her core through her entire body. Spike came soon after, and as she slid free of him, they collapsed to the floor of the shuttle in an exhausted heap, both changing back into human guise. 

Spike turned them around so that she was cuddled up in his lap and his back was against the clear wall, and they lay that way, both panting and sated, watching the universe around them. 

“It’s so vast,” Buffy finally said, feeling like they could just float away. “I could stay here forever with you.”

Spike laughed softly. “I think we could arrange another trip or two.”

She laid her head back against his chest. “Good.” 

* * *

Forty-four years later, Buffy was on her morning jog through the city with the goal of picking up bagels and coffee on her way home. Spike was still sleeping in their bed, and this was their Sunday morning routine – a routine they’d only had for the last decade or so since their adopted daughter went off to college. 

Buffy was, by now, used to the changes in city life. Tall skyscrapers were on every block, and transport vehicles whizzed through the air on designated legal fly zones all around her and the buildings as she ran. Her goal was always to reach Hermann Park, which was amazing because it was hundreds of years old. She loved the oasis of trees and green in the middle of the city. The air was clean everywhere, but somehow around living plants she felt like it was different. The smell was precious and alive in a way that she wasn’t. 

Without warning, a vehicle spiraled down in front of her, crashing into a clothing store front. Hurrying forward, she helped the dazed passengers free of the crumpled metal. The way safety was on the machines, neither of the couple was harmed. . . just a little confused. She called a tech support person for them, and as she waited for the call to go through and a crowd began to gather, she noticed she was in front of a pet store. 

There was a hedgehog display in the window, and after she hung up with the support person, she found herself wandering into the shop and peering into the cage. Something tickled in the back of her mind. . . something she was supposed to remember.

One of the little hedgehogs peeked up at her, his eyes alive with intelligence. Then, she remembered. 

Ignoring the shopkeeper’s query about whether she wanted to hold the little creature, she raced home and into their bedroom. Jumping on the bed, she jostled Spike awake.

He blinked sleepy eyes at her. “What’s up, pet?”

“We should go,” she said with urgency.

“Go where? We don’t have anywhere to go today. It’s Sunday. Day of rest.” He didn’t sound annoyed, just curious.

She bounced off the bed and ran to her storage drawer – the one where she threw all the odds and ends that didn’t seem to have a home. Her hand found the map that had taken them here so many years ago. It didn’t come alive under her touch.

Spike appeared over her shoulder. “You ready to move on then, love?”

She smiled up at him. “Yeah. I think so. You up for an adventure?”

He kissed her forehead. “With you? Always.” 

Two hours later, they’d consulted Dawn and purchased the latest and best time travel device on the underground market. It seemed that time travel still wasn’t widely accepted or encouraged, but they had connections with the right people. They then left their daughter a long, heartfelt message that would probably confuse her because she wasn’t losing her parents. This Buffy and Spike would no longer be in her life, but the Buffy and Spike that existed in this time would be. 

Spike promised Buffy that they’d return to visit. She kissed him and promised him that she’d remind him. 

Then, Spike held up and activated the spherical black ball because it was his turn to choose where in time they’d be going. Tiny cerulean lights dotted the surface as the device came to life, and as Buffy clasped his hand with hers, the lights projected large round images of the past all along the floor and ceiling and walls of their apartment. Spike scanned the images, and then, his eyes lit with happiness. “That one,” he said, inclining his head.

“Which one?” Buffy asked. Then, she saw what he saw: a time from their past that she knew he cherished beyond measure. . . a memory that involved neither of them dying. She smiled up at him. “Perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> I had a hard time coming up with a title, so yellowb and I brainstormed. Our second favorite was: Buffy Decided that After Being Birthed by a Cat, She'd Rather Adopt. 
> 
> Small nods here to OffYourBird (Paul! Also my husband's name) and Small Boat. 
> 
> I really wanted Spuffy to have sex in a glass elevator because of a long ago fandom discussion with _tiana_ and that turned into Spike and vampire Buffy in a space shuttle.


End file.
